By Perpetua Onuegbu

Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS) Nigeria has called for credible electoral processes at the local government level to enable the election of competent representatives capable of addressing grassroots needs.

The Resident Representative of KAS Nigeria, Ms Marija Peran, made the call at a one-day dialogue in Abuja.

The dialogue, organised by the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) in collaboration with KAS, had the theme: “Local Government Autonomy in Nigeria: Effects of Corruption and Inefficiency on Good Governance”.

Peran, represented by the KAS Programme Manager, Mr Samson Adeniran, identified corruption and inefficiency as major obstacles to effective local governance.

She said addressing these issues required not only institutional reforms but also a collective commitment to integrity and accountability at all levels.

She added that the way local government elections are conducted determines the level of autonomy councils enjoy.

“Electoral processes must enable genuine representation, allowing competent leadership to emerge free from undue external influence.

“Without credible and fair elections, local governance risks becoming an extension of centralised control instead of an independent structure responsive to the grassroots,” she said.

She also called for constitutional and legislative reforms that would safeguard local government independence while ensuring strong accountability frameworks.

Executive Director of CISLAC, Mr Auwal Rafsanjani, said financial autonomy for local governments had not translated into good governance due to political interference and weak institutions.

He said in many states, local governments functioned as extensions of state executive power, with local officials accountable to governors instead of the people.

“Appointments, elections, budget allocations and contract awards are often dictated by state actors.

“The practice of replacing elected councils with unelected caretaker committees, sometimes for years, is a breach of the constitution.

“These actions undermine democracy and hinder development at the grassroots,” he said.

Rafsanjani also called for scrutiny of joint state-local government accounts, describing them as channels for siphoning public funds.

“Without transparency, autonomy remains symbolic,” he said.

Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Dr Musa Aliyu, said state-level influence had led to structural and operational weaknesses in local governance.

He said although Section 7 of the 1999 Constitution recognises local governments as a democratic tier, challenges persist.

Aliyu noted that unqualified individuals were often appointed as chairmen and councillors, weakening service delivery.

“Inadequate electoral processes fail to produce credible leaders, and this opens the door for corruption,” he said.

Also speaking, a professor of economic history and lawyer, Prof. Adetunji Ogunyemi of Obafemi Awolowo University, said the Supreme Court judgment of July 11, 2024, had granted local governments fiscal autonomy.

“Local governments can no longer claim they are financially constrained by state governments.

“They now have full autonomy to pursue their budgets and operate independently,” he said. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Tosin Kolade

By Adeyemi Adeleye

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Lagos State has commended political gladiators in Surulere Federal Constituency I for peaceful conduct in the ongoing by-election in the constituency.

INEC’s Resident Electoral Commissioner in Lagos state, Prof. Ayobami Salami, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) at INEC office in Surulere Local Government that the politicians had conducted themselves creditably well.

NAN reports that Surulere Constituency I has personalities like former governor, Mr Babatunde Fashola (SAN); Femi Gbajabiamila, a former speaker, House of Representatives and Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu;  Mr Desmond Elliot, lawmaker and Nollywood Icon,  representing the constituency at the State  House of Assembly.

According to  the REC,  there has not been any record of violence, praying not to record any till the end of the exercise.

“The process has been very smooth and peaceful and everybody seems to be happy with it and we have no negative complaint so far.

“So far, I must say that the political gladiators in Surulere Federal Constituency I have conducted themselves creditably well and I have seen the spirit of sportsmanship.

“I just pray that they carry on with this spirit till the end of the process even after the results have been announced,” the INEC boss said.

He assured voters that only the votes cast would determine the winner of the poll.

“What I am assuring the people in this constituency is that their votes will count and the result will be the reflection of their wish.

“I am assuring everybody that the results will be the true reflection of the wish of the voters,” he said.

On voters apathy, Salami, who noted that he had gone round to monitor the situation, said that he equally noticed the same.

He, however, said that the situation was not unusual.

“That is a normal pattern in a  by-election or rerun election, the turnout is  usually lower than that of the general elections.

“We should not have the same expectations on the turnout that we had in the general elections. That is the usual pattern.

“The way forward is continuous voter education and mobilisation of the people which should be the joint efforts of all the stakeholders not just INEC,” Salami said.

NAN reports that 12 candidates of different political parties are contesting in the election.

The seat became vacant due to the resignation of the former occupant, Rep. Femi Gbajabiamila, who after winning, was appointed by President Bola Tinubu as his Chief of Staff. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)
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Edited by Chioma Ugboma

By Emmanuel Oloniruha

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has described media report that 94 per cent all the elective positions contested in 2023 general elections are being contested at the tribunal as incorrect.

INEC National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Sam Olumekun, said this in a statement on Thursday in Abuja.

Olumekun said that the attention of the commission had been drawn to a front page report by a newspaper in its Wednesday edition titled: “INEC’s credibility sinks as 94% contested posts await tribunal.”

He said that the commission would have ignored the report if it did not emanate from one of our country’s flagship and reputable newspapers.

He said that, however, the report under reference contained inaccurate figures, mix-up of pre-election and post-election cases.

He added that the report skewed comparative perspective and a headline that suggests that election petitions draw from the action or inaction of INEC.

Olumekun said that basic fact check on the information regularly published by INEC and available on its website would have shown that in 2023, elections were not conducted in 1,280 constituencies, including 782 state assembly seats.

“On the contrary, elections were conducted in 1,491 constituencies across the country made up of 1 Presidential, 28 Governorship, 109 Senatorial, 360 House of Representatives and 993 State Assembly constituencies.

“Similarly, the claim that State Assembly elections were held in only 28 States of the country is made on the lazy assumption that no such elections were held in the eight States of the federation where executive elections are held off-cycle.

“As every attentive Nigerian knows, the tenure of legislators is tied to the legislative houses which is a fixed term of four years from the date the Assembly is inaugurated unlike the term of office of the executive which begins from the date they take the oath of office, “ he said.

Olumekun also faulted the report blaming the pre-election cases arising from the conduct of primary elections by political parties on INEC.

He said those were intra-party cases involving party members in which they joined INEC and seek for reliefs binding on it, even as INEC does not conduct primaries for political parties.

“Thirdly, in pursuit of their right under the law, many litigants in Nigeria unfortunately file election petitions over the most improbable cases and later withdraw them or they are dismissed by the tribunals.

“If the report had taken time to analyse the outcome of the cases decided so far by the tribunals, it would have discovered that out of 1,196 petitions, 712 were dismissed and 179 withdrawn.

“This means that in 891 cases (74.4 per cent), the tribunals found no merit in the petitions and affirmed the result of the elections conducted by INEC.

“It is surprising how the mere filing of petitions constitute a blot on the integrity of the recent elections conducted by INEC when in fact they constitute an integral part of the democratic process, “ Olumekun said.

He added that the said report also analysed the total number of petitions as if they were filed against the outcome of the elections in 94 per cent of all the elective positions without considering details of the cases.

Olumekun said that multiple petitions were filed by candidates and political parties as petitioners in a single constituency.

“For example, in one state in the south south geopolitical zone of the country, eight petitions were filed challenging the governorship election out of which seven were dismissed and one withdrawn.

“Therefore, the number of election petitions filed in respect of all elective offices will certainly outnumber the total number of constituencies/elective offices.

“To spread them across the constituencies and proceed to calculate the percentage is to count some constituencies several times which is methodologically problematic and statistically illogical,” he said.

He added that it was also pertinent to note that the grounds for challenging the outcome of an election as provided in Section 134 of the Electoral Act, 2022 were not limited to the conduct of election by the commission.

Olumekun said that an election might be questioned on the ground that the winner of the election was not qualified to contest the election by virtue of his academic qualifications, age etc.

He said that many of the petitioners did not challenge the conduct of the elections by INEC but the eligibility of candidates or their nomination by political parties.

He added that under the law, INEC has no power to screen candidates, as only the courts can disqualify candidates.

“Six, a comparative analysis would have addressed the deliberate effort in the report to portray the 2023 General Election as regressive on account of litigation without empirical evidence.

“Over the last three electoral cycles, the number of election petitions may be rising but not the number of upturned elections. In 2015, 663 cases were filed at the tribunals, 87 (13.1 per cent) were nullified and the commission ordered to conduct re-run in some polling units or entire constituencies.

“In 2019, 807 petitions were filed but elections were only re-run in 30 (3.71per cent) consituencies (three Senatorial Districts, 13 Federal Constituencies and 14 State Constituencies).

“While the 2023 post-election litigations are ongoing, all five petitions filed in respect of the Presidential election were dismissed while three are pending on appeal,” he said

Olumekun said that as at Monday Oct 16, out of 82 governorship election petitions, 72 (87.8 per cent) were either dismissed or withdrawn by the petitioners.

“For senatorial elections, 146 petitions were filed out of which 100 (68.5per cent) were dismissed or withdrawn.

“For the House of Representatives, 413 petitions were filed out of which 309 (74.81 per cent) were dismissed or withdrawn while for State Houses of Assembly, 550 petitions were filed out of which 468 (82.4 per cent) were dismissed or withdrawn,” he said.

Olumekun said it was inappropriate to solely assess the credibility of INEC or the conduct of the 2023 General Election on the number of petitions filed by litigants who, in any case, have the right to do so under the law.

“While we wish to restate our continuing partnership with the media, it is prudent to state that the pen should be used to strengthen rather than impugn the integrity of public institutions particularly where basic statistics demand that we should be circumspect, “ he said. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Julius Toba-Jegede

By Christian Njoku

Persons Living with Disabilities (PWDs), under the auspices of TAF Africa, an NGO,  has appealed to the Government of Cross River to fix a date for Local Government Election in the state.

This was disclosed by Dr. Jake Epelle, Convener, TAF Africa, on Saturday in Calabar during a workshop to train leaders of various disability groups on skillful and impactful advocacy to build their capacities.

Epelle said that it was time for the present administration in Cross River to put out a date and time for the LG polls.

He said that the election would help Gov. Bassey Otu in his roadmap to building a virile state.

“We chose Cross River because we want to support the state through our project to have inclusive election, governance and Civil Society Organisations, (CSOs) that will champion the cause of disability inclusion in its entirety.

“The opportunities that will come out of this effort will go to PWDs with equity, because I can assure you that if PWDs are not united, we will get nothing  In fact, some politicians will take advantage of the crisis and do nothing for us.

“Although TAF Africa has limited resources, with our effective management and goodwill, we can get a lot of things done as it concerns equipment for PWDs for the LG polls in the state,” he said.

Epelle maintained that they wanted Cross River to be the first state to have a concrete and inclusive framework that would drive governance from the grassroot.

On his part, Prof. Anthony Owan-Enoh, Secretary to the Government of Cross River said he was willing to link PWDs to the state government for them to get easy access.

Owan-Enoh noted that disability does not mean lack of ability because for every element of disability, there is so much potential and ability behind it.

“I have offered to be an ambassador for the PWDs in Cross River, to speak for them and help them get what they deserve.

“PWDs should come out of their shells, forget about their conditions and identify their potential like every other humans and contribute their best for the development of the society.

Similarly, Prof. Mike Oshie, Chairman Cross River Independent Electoral Commission (CROSIEC) said disability does not mean lack of capacity,  adding that many PWDs in the commission had delivered when given opportunities.

“We have PWDs as staff in the commission and they participate during the elections.  For the equipment needed for them, we will work with TAF Africa to help us in that area.

“The commission already has an electoral guideline but with this new development I have sent it to PWDs to review for us to adopt for a better LG poll,” he noted.

Some of the PWDs who spoke to the News Agency of Nigeria, (NAN) said the workshop was enriching and would help them push better towards inclusion and integration of PWDs in the society.

They said apart from learning to live as contributors in the society and not like liabilities, they had learnt to engage in diplomatic advocacy to achieve their aims instead of resorting to violence.

NAN reports that TAF Africa, formerly The Albino Foundation is an umbrella body of PWDs at the national and international level for advocacy through programme designs. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Julius